


Baby, it's cold outside

by allegedlyanandroid



Category: Detroit: Become Human (Video Game)
Genre: Gavin Reed Not Being an Asshole, Half-Assed Confessions, Hypothermia, M/M, Mild Hurt/Comfort, Soft Upgraded Connor | RK900, early morning conversations
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-19
Updated: 2020-01-19
Packaged: 2021-02-27 12:47:40
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,123
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22317319
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/allegedlyanandroid/pseuds/allegedlyanandroid
Summary: Staking out a building takes a turn for the worse when an unfortunate snowstorm hits Detroit.
Relationships: Upgraded Connor | RK900/Gavin Reed
Comments: 18
Kudos: 194





	Baby, it's cold outside

**Author's Note:**

> Title by the song with the same name - 'Baby, it's cold outside' - Frank Loesser

**Baby, it** **’** **s cold outside**

A thick layer of snow coated the streets of Detroit. Soft specks of white that added up over the course of several nights after a significant drop in temperature. It was a perfect day to stay inside with a warm blanket draped over his shoulders and a hot drink while lazing about. Especially since the news had warned about an incoming storm. Instead Gavin was sitting in a freezing car, the warmth had dwindled to nothing considering the time they’d spent inside, next to his partner staking out a building. 

He should’ve put on warmer clothing but the call had come last minute after Anderson called in sick that morning and a red ice dealer connected to a suspected large drug ring had been on the move. Fowler had given him and Nines the task of bringing him in since Connor had asked for leave to take care of his sick partner. 

And now, here they were.

Gavin shivers and rubs his hands together to return some semblance of warmth to the frozen digits as he glares mutinously at the entrance. Fuck if he wasn’t actively regretting his choices in life. 

“Detective Reed, are you alright?” Nines asks, his voice barely more than a low hum. 

“I’m fine.” Short. Clipped. Enough to get his point across without having his teeth clattering together before he could clench his jaw tight again. 

A small flicker of something passes over Nines’ face. 

“You don’t seem fine,” Nines says. 

Gavin ignores the odd inflection in his tone and is about to say something he’ll definitely regret later when movement causes them both to turn towards the street outside. Scurrying across the tarmac is the very man they’d been waiting for. He sees them sitting there and breaks of into a sprint. 

“Phck!” Gavin curses as he yanks the door open just as their suspect takes a sharp left and disappears down an alley. He races after him, a few steps behind his partner. The distance grows, it always does, since Nines is much faster than him. 

“Most streets here are dead ends. Go left, we should be able to cut him off on fifth.” Nines' voice carries over to him, carefully moderated so that Gavin will be the only one hearing it. 

“Got it!” 

His legs are burning by the time he reaches the aforementioned street and he looks around wildly. A slow trickle of sweat is steadily working its way down his spine and the longer he stands still the colder it becomes. There’s no sign of Nines anywhere and Gavin curses to himself. He hopes it’s because Nines caught up and not because he’s bleeding out in a ditch somewhere. The thought alone has him jogging into the labyrinth of alleyways to finds his partner, if only so he can yell at him. 

Amidst the chaotic chase snow had begun falling again. 

-~- 

Nines had underestimated the time it would take to have their suspect in cuffs. Apparently, his knowledge of the area had been subpar at best and Nines had had him cornered quickly. He called dispatch and a pair of patrol officers in the area had come to pick up the handcuffed man to bring back to the precinct. 

He watches as they drive away. Satisfied with the result, he turns on his heel and stalks back towards the car after pinging Gavin’s phone. It takes him no time at all to find his way back and he waits patiently for Gavin to return. The wind had picked up drastically and it’s growing harder to see by the minute. Nines sends a second text to notify Gavin of his whereabouts but again gets nothing in return. 

Strange considering Gavin usually replies quickly. 

Ten minutes pass and Nines is starting to feel anxious. Another text with no response later and he’s retracing Gavin’s steps. None of the calls go through either. The footprints he’s left behind are almost entirely covered by now as the flurry of snowflakes flittering in the air grows heavier still. 

Nines quickens his pace when the footprints drag out, like Gavin hadn’t the energy to lift his feet properly as they weave irregular patterns across the snow-covered asphalt. 

He stumbles into him after turning a corner and nearly sends them both sprawling to the ground in his self-induced worry. Relief slams him hard but only for the briefest of moments. “Gav-“ he cuts himself off when unfocused, glassy eyes turn to him. 

Gavin is shivering hard and he looks... confused, absent. “Nine?” 

Even the one word is dragged out and stumbled over. 

Nines takes Gavin’s cheeks in his hands, trying to get him to focus. It draws attention to the coldness of his skin and Nines’ LED flickers yellow-red-yellow-RED when he finally processes enough information to note how Gavin is suffering from hypothermia from the prolonged exposure to sub-zero temperatures. 

He needs to get him inside. Warm him up until help can arrive. 

In careful movements, he gathers Gavin up in his arms and lifts him gently into a bridal carry. It worries him the way Gavin lets him without a single complaint or cuss. He walks quickly but carefully, as not to jar Gavin unnecessarily, towards his apartment complex. It’s only a block or so away. Meanwhile he contacts emergency services. 

By the time they are at his door he is biting back the urge to scream. The snowstorm had hit them hard and it was near impossible for the emergency vehicles to make their way to their position. They were on their own. 

Shoes are kicked off with controlled violence as he makes his way through the two-room apartment to deposit Detective Reed on his bed. 

Nines strips him of his clothes, wondering briefly how they’d managed to get wet, and bundles him up in the meagre collection of blankets he owns. The shivering doesn’t cease. 

With a few pointed commands, Nines’ body starts heating up, expelling a warmth that isn’t natural and should definitely not be maintained for long periods of time. He places a hand on the back of Gavin’s neck and the other sneaks beneath the blankets to land on his chest. 

_‘Not enough,’_ he thinks desperately when Gavin’s vitals continue to drop. A frustrated sigh wheedles its way out of his throat and Nines stands up to shrug out of his clothes and slide beneath the covers. He curls up around the smaller man, chest to chest and slings his arms around Gavin’s back to splay his hands over the broad expands of his back and neck. Their legs tangle together but he makes sure to focus heavily on Gavin’s torso to make sure the cold blood doesn’t rush back to his heart and lungs. 

All he can do now is wait. 

-~-

Gavin wakes up with muddled thoughts and finds himself blanketed in warmth. He snuffles into the pillow, trying to bury further into it only to pause. It’s... much firmer than he’s used to. It is also moving slightly. Warning bells sound in his mind as he shoots up and scrambles backwards. 

_'Where am I? How did I get here? What the fuck happened last night?'_

The questions spin round and round in his head as he finally focuses on a sleep-mussed Nines peering down at him from where he’d (in his haste) fallen over the side of the bed. The android is looking exceptionally pleased. “Gavin!” 

“What the fuck? What the fuck? _What the-?_ ” 

“Fuck?” Nines fills in, voice tinted with clear amusement. It switches almost as quickly into something somber and anxious all at once. “Yesterday, you were-“ 

_“_ _Why the fuck am I naked?!"_ Gavin screeches after he’s finally collected himself enough to notice that hardwood floors on naked skin is decidedly cold. He covers himself as best he can with his hands and glares up at Nines accusingly. 

“If you would let me expl-“ 

“Did we do something? Did _you_ do something?” Gavin says, putting emphasis on the _you_ because he’d certainly never muster up the guts to initiate anything between them but the thought of Nines and him potentially doing... _whatever_ while Gavin was too out of it to remember set his stomach rolling. Though, he regrets the words as soon as he says them (because Nines would never, and he knows this) and his partner’s face goes from anxious to looking like someone slapped him hard across the face to absolute blankness. 

“If you’re implying that I would take advantage of you while you are in no state to give proper consent-“ Nines breaks off, like he can’t even voice his thoughts aloud and it makes Gavin feel like shit. 

“I didn’t mean it. I know you wouldn’t- _f_ _uck_!” Gavin pulls his knees up and circles his arms around them, buries his face there. “I’m just confused. What the hell happened?” 

“I was going to explain before you so eloquently cut me off,” Nines says. He rises from the bed and drops the heavy blanket over Gavin’s head but not before Gavin manages to get an eyeful of the smooth, blank space between Nines’ legs and the miles of pale skin on display. With a squeak he ducks his head down again and pulls the blanket over himself, relishing in the lingering warmth there until the rustling of Nines putting on clothes quiets down. 

A peek up reveals Nines in loose-fitting black pants and a soft-looking, navy-blue, knitted sweater. With the bedhead and indents in his cheek from the creases of the pillowcase he looks comfier and more human than Gavin has ever seen him before. 

The moment passes and Gavin is left staring at the open door Nines had passed through with the invitation to join him when or if he feels up for it. He sighs and knocks his head a few times against his knees. He knows he fucked up and now is as good of a time as ever to man up and apologise. Problem being his state of undress. Looking around the room, he sees his clothes discarded in a pile on the floor. 

They’re cold and damp to the touch and he very nearly recoils at the feeling. Gavin bites his lip and glances over to where Nines’ shirt from yesterday is bundled up against the wall. Dry. Gavin puts it on and shimmies into his damp boxers from yesterday with a grimace. The shirtsleeves keep getting in the way. They go well past the tips of his fingers and the hem hangs down to rest close to his upper thighs. 

Gavin folds the blanket and puts it on the bed amongst the other ones before setting out to find Nines. He pads over the expensive-looking carpet on the living room floor but takes in no other details as he zeroes in on Nines standing in the kitchen. The wide doorframe makes for a decent support and he leans against it while rubbing the scar on his nose in discomfort. “Look, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said that and I know you’d never take advantage of me or anyone for that matter. I’m... I’m really sorry, okay?” 

Nines sighs. “You have nothing to apologise for. It was an expected reaction, given the circumstances, I just... still found myself taken aback,” he explains, stumbling a bit over the words. “I’m sorry too. I meant to leave after your condition stabilised but I kind of... fell asleep?” Nines continues. The sentence trails off at a higher pitch. As if he’s asking a question rather than stating facts. 

“Anyway,” he clears his throat and turns around to face Gavin, LED flickering red at the sight greeting him before returning to its ordinary blue, “-it was a clear breach of boundaries and I apologise for making you uncomfortable.” 

“‘S fine, I guess.” Gavin rubs the scar on his nose again, looking anything but comfortable in the moment. 

Nines’ lips press together in a displeased grimace. “You’re very conscious of keeping people at a distance Gavin and that’s a choice people, myself included, should respect. No one should have their freedom of choice taken from them. I shouldn’t have been so careless.” 

A beep interrupts their silent staring contest and Nines turns back towards the stove for a brief moment. He pours something into a mug before spinning around again with the mug clutched in his hands and then, after a minor pause, he hesitantly offers it for Gavin to take. Gavin shrugs and steps forward, accepting the cup of dark brown liquid (cocoa, not coffee he realises after a tentative sip) and cradles the warm ceramic to his chest. 

He walks to the kitchen table and slides into one of the two chairs, pulling his knees up so the heels of his feet rest on the edge of the chair, all the while still cradling the mug with all the care one would show a newborn child. Gavin glances up to notice Nines staring piercingly at him so he raises an eyebrow and inclines his head towards the chair opposite him. 

Nines seems to come back to himself at that and he grabs a bottle of thirium from the fridge before sinking into the seat across from Gavin. 

He clears his throat. “After we split up, I managed to capture the suspect quicker than expected and I made the mistake of waiting until after Officer Miller arrived to contact you the first time. When I eventually made it back to the car you weren’t there yet.” 

“Then after several failed attempts to establish contact I decided to try and find you myself. Your footprints were already half-buried by that point.” Nines’ hands grip tighter around the glass bottle. “By the time I found you, you were barely responsive. A combination of lack of proper attire, the weather conditions and our time in the car had you hypothermic.” 

Gavin blinks and chimes in with a “yeah, that makes sense”, already putting the pieces together and wondering quietly to himself when his life turned into some 90’s rom-com. 

“Emergency services were cut off due to the heavy snowfall and harsh winds so I brought you to my apartment. I got you out of your wet garments and bundled you up in blankets while using my hands as makeshift heating pads,” Nines continues, waving them in the air for a second. “Still... you weren’t getting much better and as time passed my worry continued to mount. So I-“ 

Nines clears his throat awkwardly. “-so I decided to share body heat in hopes that it would be enough to get your temperature up to an acceptable level.” 

“Okay.” Gavin nods slowly. “And then?” 

“You gradually began to approach a more acceptable temperature while I... fell asleep like I said. I suppose I haven’t been resting as much as I need these past few weeks. I’m sorry.” 

“Well,” Gavin says considering, after a short moment of silence, “thank you for saving my life and all that. When you had such a great opportunity to make it look like an accident too.” He continues, trying to liven up the rather tense situation. He nudges Nines’ leg beneath the table to empathies his point. 

Nines’ LED circles red a few seconds before he seems to realise Gavin is messing with him. “Ah, what a shame.” Nines remarks, voice dry as a desert. “Foiled again by my sense of morals. I suppose I should be grateful one of us has some.” 

“Oi!” 

A self-satisfied smirk quirks Nines’ lips as he dodges Gavin’s attempts to kick him underneath the table. The pout he gets in response is positively adorable and Nines can’t help but stare at the darling figure across from him. Still impossible and loud as ever and most importantly _alive._

“-nd another thing! Are you even listening to me?!” 

“No.” 

Gavin gapes at him. “Rude! What the hell kind of a host are you?” 

“You can leave anytime Gavin; I’m not holding you hostage.” 

Gavin quirks a brow and pointedly looks out the window. There’s nearly four feet’ worth of snow covering the ground and further down the road it appears a phone line has snapped during the night and now it lies miserably, half-buried by snow and blocking the road. “Stellar idea dumbass.” 

Nines shrugs easily as they descend into comfortable silence. 

A while later, as Gavin drains the last dregs of cocoa, he turns the cup over in his hands and glances up at his partner. Nines is watching the snow falling outside the window in fine flakes. In the shitty indoor lighting of the kitchen Gavin finds himself wanting to taste the small smile adorning Nines’s lips. He steels himself and hopes he’s been reading the signs right these last few weeks and that the embarrassingly fond glances he catches Nines levelling his way haven’t been a figment of his own imagination. 

“So,” he begins, halting when Nines turns his focus on Gavin and Gavin alone, his blueish-grey eyes piercing in their intensity. “If I said I was feeling cold...“ Gavin continues and trails off there, unable to find words enough to continue. 

Nines cocks his head to the side and says carefully: “I suppose I’d have to bundle you up in blankets.” 

“Thought you said blankets weren’t a good enough way to retain body heat.” 

Nines reaches across the table to take the mug from his hands and put it to one side before taking both of Gavins’ hands in his own. He allows his fingers to rub circular patterns into work-hardened skin before he lifts one to his mouth to plant a gentle kiss to the back of it. “I suppose-” he says, lips close enough to brush against Gavin’s skin, “I suppose I could help with that too.” 

When Nines stands up, Gavin follows in a haze, watching his partner’s back and their entwined hands while he’s led back to the bedroom, wondering how this had managed to come to pass. They part long enough for Nines to shake out the blanket and strip out of their shirts before falling under the covers together. 

Gavin slides up and settles with Nines’ outstretched arm hovering in the air above him and proceeds to plaster himself to Nines’ side like a particularly over-affectionate stray. His head comes to rest against Nines’s chest, the thrumming of circuitry and fans loud in the absence of other sounds. 

Nines pulls Gavin tighter against himself and buries his nose in Gavin’s hair to breathe in his scent. 

“This is nice,” Gavin mumbles, quite satisfied with this particular turn of events. 

Nines hums his assent into the locks of Gavin’s hair and pulls him just the tiniest bit closer. 

**Author's Note:**

> I'm on Tumblr if you want to come say hi! [allegedlyanandroid](https://allegedlyanandroid.tumblr.com/)


End file.
